


Kattegat desserts and sweets

by muselesswriter



Category: Vikings (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Cupcakes, Dessert & Sweets, Disabled Character, Emotional Manipulation, Everyone Is Alive, F/F, F/M, Family Drama, Firefighters, Hospitals, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, M/M, Meet the Family, Minor Character Death, Multi, No Sex, Other, Past Drug Addiction, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Restaurants, Sick Character, Waiters & Waitresses, new season mentioned
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-07
Updated: 2019-12-13
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:46:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21705439
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/muselesswriter/pseuds/muselesswriter
Summary: in a world, where Vikings is a reference to the workers of a sweets cafe, Ragnar Lothbrok, runs a cafe with the aid of his five sons, a documentary about their work and life is being filmed by a show named Behind the glass doors, that shows the struggles of being a worker of a successful place, the stress, the tears, the laughs, the breakdowns, all exclusive.Basically an AU where our beloved Vikings are in a modern setting and instead of invading lands they make cupcakes and cookies.
Relationships: Aslaug/Ragnar Lothbrok, Athelstan/Ragnar Lothbrok, Bjorn & Ragnar Lothbrok, Bjorn & Ubbe & Hvitserk & Sigurd & Ivar, Bjorn/Thorunn (Vikings), Freydis/Ivar (Vikings), Hvitserk/Thora (Vikings), Lagertha/Ragnar Lothbrok, Ragnar Lothbrok & Rollo (Vikings), Sigurd (Vikings)/Original Male Character(s), Torvi/Ubbe (Vikings), ivar/oleg
Comments: 7
Kudos: 31





	1. Day one

**Author's Note:**

> This is supposed to be written in a documentary type of things, it's not as descriptive as it should be because it focuses more on the conversations between the characters and the cameramen.

Kattegat, the famous dessert and sweets cafe which everyone is obsessed with nowadays, the hipsters like the authenticity of the place and now, you need to book a table to eat here on the weekends! Kattegat has been in the Lothbrok family for a few years now, Ragnar Lothbrok bought it from Mr. Haraldson, it is now run by Ragnar Lothbrok and his five sons, but life’s never been as magical as it seems.

**11:30 a.m.**

A fiftyish years old man entered an office in the back of the restaurant with the cameramen following him, filming everything, not leaving any details out, he seemed both, uncomfortable and eager “remind me, how does this work?” He asked as a nametag showed on the left Ragnar Lothbrok, manager, it read _“we’ll film every second of your lives for the next week, and use the clips in an exclusive show that’s called behind the glass doors, you’ll have to do interviews and such, it’s like keeping up with the Kardashians, only better and it’s for people who actually earned their fame through hard work”_ the man behind the camera replied “oh, I’m familiar with that show” Ragnar replied with a smile.

_“alrighty then! Let’s start! When did you buy this place?”_ The voice said again “I bought it when my son, Bjorn was only a child... I believe around ten? I’m bad with dates, I was broke, not the infamous Ragnar, I lived in a studio apartment with Lagartha and my two children, I was just a dish boy at first, cleaning up after people, Haraldson fired me for wanting a promotion” he laughed “I disappeared for a while, worked hard in different jobs, then I heard Haraldson was selling the place, me, Lagartha, Rollo, and Floki… We put our money together and bought it, and now we own branches in Iceland and France!”

_“How did you come up with the dessert idea?”_ The voice asked again “well, funny, it started as a cupcake shop, we had cupcakes to die for, we still make them, Lagartha always liked cupcakes, one day I thought what if we make cookies too? Lagartha didn’t like it, she said we should focus on cupcakes they are our masterpiece, and leave others, for now, I refused… our first try to sell cookies, wasn’t successful and it caused problems, plenty, eventually, Lagartha left the job, then me, Bjorn and Gida with her, then Aslug came and I started a new life, had children… four, and developed the shop, you know, life goes on, but most of those desserts are Bjorn’s ideas, he’s an explorer! He comes up with something new all the time!”

_“How’s life as a manager?”_ , “as the manager, I have to deal with papers more than anything, I’m retiring soon though, all of my children have a role here, Bjorn will take my place as manager, Ubbe will be hall manager, Hvitserk will run the kitchen, Sigurd will handle the social media and Ivar will do the economic stuff, all I did by myself when I was younger but now I can rely on my boys.” Ragnar replied then looked at a family portrait on the wall

_“what about Gida?”_ The man asked “Gida’s more into a simple life, restaurant stress isn’t for her, she’s helping refugees in Saudan instead as a teacher” The next minute was Ragnar going through papers and checking up on their other branches, the France branch was on fire but Iceland needed more work according to their latest statics

**02:05 p.m.**

Two tall men were whispering to each other in a corner, as the camera went closer the name tags appeared reading Bjorn, the hall manager, and Ubbe, the host. it was midday and more than half of the tables were taken _“boys please, keep your mics on you all the time! It’s in the contract!”_ The producer, Holly Smith begged behind the camera “apologies, we were talking about a private matter” Bjorn said bowing his head _“you agreed, no secrets or privacy for the next week, if you gonna discuss dirty matters, the whole world gotta hear it”_ she replied and the boys laughed

“dirty matters? No! We were discussing what to put for tomorrow’s special!” Bjorn laughed “yeah, our lives is that boring, that when we have a chance we discuss even more food matters” Ubbe added.

“ _I don’t believe that! But since we’re talking food special... Can we know what it will be?”_ the voice behind the camera asked “no spoilers! That’s the first rule in show business” Bjorn winked at the camera then looked at the door as it opened, he nudged Ubbe’s arm and sighed “we have a case of thirty-nine” the camera turned and showed four middle-aged women walking in, Ubbe walked to them and greeted them then helped them find a seat.

_“What’s case thirty-nine?”_ the voice asked, Bjorn sighed again “this type, a rich woman, fine dressed, she walks in expecting this place to treat her like a french restaurant, will ask for low fats food, will ask about all ingredients, will make the waiter explain all the food in the list, she’ll eat, ask for manager, cause a scene, pay and leave screaming I WILL NOT REFER YOUR PLACE TO MY RICH FRIENDS, this is a place inspired by our ancestors from Norway, Vikings! It’s a place to mess around and be loud, not to drink champagne and eat oeuf de Fromage” Bjorn explained.

_“do you have a code for everything?”_ the camera person asked “almost everything, don’t worry, you’ll figure it out just in time” he mumbled then a man came to him and whispered something in his ears, Bjorn nodded and walked fast to the changing room, where a new waitress, name tag read Thorrun, a waitress who was crying, screaming she can’t do this anymore, they whispered to each other then she changed into regular clothes and threw the uniform on the floor “I quit!” she said then stormed off sobbing.

_“What happened?”_ , “Thorrun’s been working here for a while, costumers were rude to her, she couldn’t take it anymore… too bad, we were friends, now I’m short-staffed and in need of someone before crazy Saturday! Fuck me!” Bjorn huffed and then another waiter walked in and asked him to go back to the hall, he walked to the table where the four-women sat and had a very long discussion about how he will not apologize for not putting a tiny spoon for with the cupcake, he explained five times at least how cupcakes should be picked up and eaten by hand, they asked for refund or a settlement but got neither at the end, they told him they won’t refer this place to anyone and how they’d end up making them lose followers.

**03:30 p.m.**

The scene is the kitchen now, everyone was running to do their job, a man standing in the middle of the way and giving everyone a task “come on people! Only fourteen more and we are done!” the man screamed, the name tag read Hvitserk, kitchen manager he’s Ragnar’s other son, this one was shorter than the previous two and a little skinnier, probably from running after the workers.

“This place is why I started drinking, out there, it’s less stressful! Here we run and work 24/7 with no breaks! We barely have time for bathroom, that beautiful strawberry cupcake you love so much? It is made from the tears of a brilliant cook! Everyone has injuries, if not physically, mentally or emotionally, that’s what it’s like to work in the kitchen, any kitchen basically.” he said without being asked then screamed at a man for burning an almond cake, he checked on him for injuries first, he was alright.

“We make Norwegian desserts, besides the normal beloved desserts such as cupcakes, muffins, cookies, we try to make it feel like home where ever that is, we make; Almond Cake, Blotkake, Cinnamon thumbs, Sandbakkels, Skolebrod, Krumkake, Fastelavnsbolle, that’s about ten different things, Bjorn… came up with the idea of adding more, it was just cookies, muffins and Cinnamon Thumbs, it happened last year, now people are crazy about it! They expect something new every time they walk in… it’s stressful and tiring, but whatever pays the bills” he said to the camera while tasting a cream “this needs more sugar” he mumbled to the cook.

“Hey, come here, taste this” he motioned for the camera to come closer and picked up a spoon filled with buttercream and gave it to the camera person behind, “what do you think?” he asked, _“it’s good?”_ the voice asked unsure “only good? This will be served to five people in the next hour! I need more than Good Marvin!” he shouted unexpectedly, _“but my name isn't Marvin…”_ the voice said “I don’t care what your damn name is! Tell me what do you fucking think about the buttercream!” he huffed _“it’s a little too sweet”_ the voice said cracking nervously “you asshole need to fix this up! Three months doing this and still! The same mistake everytime you dim wit!” he yelled at the person standing behind him, the person broke down in tears as they added more ingredients to the buttercream.

A sound of dishes crashing could be heard from the back “every day we lose seven dishes at least, different reasons every time, we have a three-strikes rule, for every three times you break stuff, you pay for the fourth, now, it is Egil’s fault, he’ll pay, thirty dollars!” he shouted the last part, “damnit!” a voice screamed in the back, no one knew how Hvitserk figured out who the person who broke the dishes was, he didn’t even bother looking or checking the back, he simply knew.

The young blond pulled out a flask from his jacket and took a sip, offering some to the cameraman that’s now referred to as Marvin, he didn’t drink it, but Hvitserk took another sip before hiding it away.

**05:00 p.m.**

The camera zoomed in on a man with dark brown hair, blue eyes and two crutches on the corner of where he sat, which is a high chair, in front of him was a desk, a laptop, and a cash machine, the name read _Ivar, finance manager_ , Ragnar’s youngest son. “Are you going to stare or ask me stuff?” the man asked without even bothering to look up, he was somehow intimidating, _“oh sorry, we are filming everyone as they do their jobs”_ Marvin replied “this isn’t national geographic you know? Not an interesting subject, I’m just counting incomes, preparing bills, want crazy? Go to the kitchen” he typed something on the laptop then looked back at the papers in front of him.

Marvin looked at the crutches then back at Ivar, zooming in the camera “I was born a cripple” Ivar mumbled and typed something in the laptop _“hm?”_ Marvin asked “I saw you looking at them, It’s okay if you’re curious, I was born a cripple, dad couldn’t treat me back then, now I live with it, it doesn’t hurt that much, and yes I can feel my legs most of the time” he explained “you’re a girl, why are you called Marvin?” Ivar raised his eyes from all of the screens and the papers and looked directly at the person “ _oh, I’m Stacy, but Hvitserk yelled at my colleague Adam in the kitchen and called him that, someone filmed it and posted it on twitter, now all of the cameramen are called Marvin by everyone”_ the woman explained, Ivar looked at her unimpressed.

“it’s a bet, every time someone new enters the kitchen, they make a bet whether Hvitserk can break their spirits in less than an hour or not” Ivar explained and handed a waiter a cheque.

_“Oh, did he succeed?”_ Stacy asked curiously, Ivar shrugged “you tell me”, _“well, he wanted to transfer to another location…”_ Stacy aka Marvin replied “this place isn’t for the weak, it is made for strong men and women who can work under all circumstances, don’t expect to be treated nicely just because you’re a guest” he rolled his eyes as a waiter walked to him and gave him an order with a Cuban “father did the stupidest thing three years ago by offering Cuban of 50% discount with no expiring date, he painted three thousands of those, we still find them until today, people still use them, we are rich, but I wish if he thought about it better, there are other ways to make people come and give us a try, that would benefit us”

_"Ragnar mentioned you had a brilliant mind”_ Marvin stated “oh he did? That explains why he’s giving the place to Bjorn… two years ago when people needed Bjorn the most he just packed his things and took his girlfriend then traveled, leaving us to deal with a mess, he’s unfit, but whatever, by the end of this year I will quit and travel the world, following the silk road, up to Russia, I made a friend there, we’d work on making our own drinks brand instead of this, I’d run my own business! The right way, of course, so when this… hell of a week... ends, we might meet again in few years” he smirked to the camera.

**06:52 p.m.**

A man sitting on a desk in a small room next to the manager, a laptop in front of him, he’s so concentrated on that, three phones on his left, and a second laptop on his right, the name tag Sigurd, social media manager appears, “here’s where the magic happens, I run all the accounts, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and delivery orders” he introduced.

_“Why do you have all of those devices?”_ Marvin asked “well, this laptop is for the social media, fast software, latest updates, high-quality security system, and it has this application that filters messages out and labels it from important to less, basically, this laptop is for everything important, the other one is for delivery, it contacts me with the staff, the kitchen, the hall, the manager, the finance department which is basically Ivar but he likes to pretend that he’s a big deal around here, we have a big screen everywhere that shows announcements and tasks list, it’s a very delicate matter” he said typing on his keyboard, the camera closed up to the screen of the laptop **announcement, Hvitserk has drinking problems** “very. Delicate.” he smirked.

_“So… it’s basically a prank?”_ Marvin asked, you could hear Ragnar cursing from the other room, “not necessarily, but now back to the technology, this phone is for delivery, this one is for complaints, and this one is mine” he said picking up each phone alone and showing it to the camera, when he picked up his phone a message popped up from John _will I be seeing you tonight? ;)_ Sigurd put it down immediately and hid the screen “if you don’t put it on the show I’ll show you Ivar’s embarrassing photos, it will give you power on him”

_“Why would I want power on Ivar?”_ Marvin asked confusion is obvious “because… Ivar is Evil! He’s plotting something, don’t fall for the sweet smile and the whole I’m a cripple act, he knows more than he shows, he has dirt on everyone and waiting for the right moment, he is pure evil!” Sigurd replied dramatically _“well, I don’t think so? My colleague works with him and she says he’s the only one who asked about her name and treated her as a person so far”_ Marvin replied “and why do you think so? It’s so he can return tonight and dig deep until he finds something on her, this man might be crippled but he is the devil" 

_“You really don’t like Ivar do you?”_ Marvin giggled “he’s my brother, I love him but most of the time I want to punch him in the face, he keeps threatening me to tell everyone about certain stuff if I ever prank him, which is bullshit, especially since I’m telling on my own terms anyways, he has a thing on everyone, no one really knows how. father is afraid of how smart he could be, that’s why he doesn’t want him to run the place… if you give Ivar enough resources he’ll take over the world and make us all his slaves” Sigurd sighed and looked straight at the camera “I think I just caused my own death.”

**07:30 p.m.**

The camera zooms in on Ubbe who sighed in relief “thirty minutes before we close! Everyone is almost gone, and life couldn’t be any happier!” he grinned and then said goodbye to few costumers walking out “this is the highlight of my day” he said again _“what do you do after closing up?”_ Marvin asked, “well, we have the cleanup, it takes from thirty minutes to an hour, we all help with that, then I return to my house, to my beautiful wife Torvi, she’s a lawyer you know?”

_“How did you two meet?”_ the person behind the camera asked, Ubbe’s eyes shined a little and stood quietly for a minute, possibly remembering the whole day “through Bjorn, he was married to her, they have two children together, then they fell out of love with each other, so I was there, trying to support her, and that’s when I realized how much of a wonderful person she is! I couldn’t help but asking Bjorn if I can ask her out, he’s my big brother, after all, I didn’t want to disrespect him, he encouraged me to follow my heart, a few months later, we were planning our own wedding! I’m a lucky man I tell you” he chuckled.

Bjorn was standing all by himself, observing the almost empty hall, only three tables were taken now and it was a matter of time _“Bjorn, how does it feel that your brother is married to your ex?”_ Marvin asked “oh, he told you that!” he chuckled “it feels great, Torvi is an amazing woman, she stayed by my side on my darkest days, and she’s a wonderful woman, Ubbe is a family guy, he’s lovable and caring, I think they are soulmates, I loved Torvi, part of me always will but she deserves more, I was never ready to settle down, even now, my wife Gunnhild, she understands that” he explained.

_“Are you all married?"_ , “no, some of us are widowed or divorced, I’m married, Ubbe is married, Ivar was married but his wife, we never liked her, she was crazy, kept filling his head with crazy ideas! He eventually figured she was using him as a paycheck and she was cheating on him, he somehow put them both in jail, it was a very dark period for everyone, it only lasted a year but Ivar almost burned this place down, Hvitserk he was married, a lovely woman but she died, she was a firefighter, someday she simply couldn’t get out of the danger zone, she stayed in the hospital for two months before dying, he was there by her side, he doesn’t admit it but we all know it broke him, possibly why he’s drinking like crazy, oh Sigurd is single, you can try your luck with that” he winked at Marvin and walked away.

Ivar was handing cheques to all the waiters announcing the end of the day when the costumers finally left, Bjorn changed the sign from open to close and a round of applause and cheers happened another successful day!

**08:15 p.m.**

Ragnar walked to the kitchen, everyone was cleaning their spots, Hvitserk was sitting in a corner hugging his legs, Ragnar sat beside him “stressful day?” Ragnar asked his son, Hvitserk looked up at him letting a confused hum, he was clearly waisted “are you feeling okay?” Ragnar asked, Hvitserk nodded and paused for a few seconds “why wouldn’t I be?” he sighed and got up, stumbling a little “I’ll go home, the guys can clean up… I told Ivar what we need to replace” he mumbled then walked out of the kitchen, to the front door, he mumbled a quick goodbye and left.

**08:44 p.m.**

Ragnar sighed and watched the cleaning process for two minutes before heading back to the front where everyone was, Bjorn, Ivar, Sigurd, and Ubbe were sitting on a table, discussing something, Ragnar joined them, they all stopped talking when he did and looked at him “what?” he questioned with a frown “Hvitserk needs help, you must put him in a rehab center or get him a therapist” Ubbe said, since no one else was volunteering.

“He will be fine, stop making a big deal out of everything” Ivar scoffed “no he’s clearly not, you are not too, one doesn’t simply recover from those events, stop treating it like nothing!” Ubbe said defensively “what do I have to do with anything now?” Ivar frowned, even though anger was visible in his eyes “Ubbe is right, you should stop making it sound like a nothing” Bjorn stated, “can we go back to our fucked up alcoholic brother and leave the fucked up crippled one for another time?” Ivar threw his hands in the air dramatically.

“It’s not him anymore… he barely eats at home, he either spends his time drinking or laying on bed… we need to help him” Sigurd mumbled, Sigurd and Hvitserk both live in the same apartment near the cafe, they share rent and such, “you are all right, but he’s a grown man, I can’t just drag him into a rehab and force him to get better” Ragnar finally said “right, you should just watch him get himself killed” Bjorn rolled his eyes.

**09:00 p.m.**

Everyone was now standing on the streets, Ragnar said his goodbyes and walked away, Ivar as well, Sigurd, Ubbe, and Bjorn were together alone now, Bjorn looked at the camera “Lagartha, my mother is hosting a dinner, so we’ll return to her house, see you tomorrow, Marvin” he waved a goodbye and crossed the road with his brothers and entered a black BMW, driving after everyone was seated.


	2. Day Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hvitserk went missing, Ragnar is trying to step up his parenting position, the brothers are trying to survive the day, Sigurd is a sassy bastard, Ivar opens up about a thing or two.

**07:30 a.m.**

The camera shows Ragnar unlocking the glass door and entering the cafe “good morning” he said with a polite smile _“up and early aren’t we?”_ Marvin chuckled, Ragnar walked to the kitchen and made himself a cup of coffee “do you want some?” he asked the cameraman following him _“no thanks, Zoe already made us some, just because we are filming in a cafe, doesn’t mean we take advantage of you guys”_ Marvin replied “suit yourself” he poured the coffee in a mug with world’s lousiest father written on it.

_“What’s with the mug?”_ Marvin asked as the camera zoomed in on it “my children bought it to me on fathers day last year, it was the first time they buy me anything so I take pride in it, I think Bjorn and Ubbe are feeling guilty whenever they see me holding it, it’s a nice way to torture my sons emotionally” he laughed and took a sip from it.

_“Walk us through a normal day would you?”_ Marvin requested and Ragnar nodded “of course, we open at eight, so workers should come any minute now and prepare for everything, we announce today’s special by using an ax to hang a paper with it written on it, we serve food until eight at night and that’s pretty much it, I spend most of the time behind the scene, mostly checking on the other branches and the possibilities of opening new ones” he greeted people as they entered the kitchen.

_“Why does every one of your sons have a manager before their title?”_ Marvin asked again, Ragnar sighed “have you met them? They are competitive! They will kill me if they feel like I’m playing favorites or underestimating one of them! That’s why everyone is something’s manager” by now he finished his coffee, washed it and put it in a special cabin labeled as workers’ items.

Bjorn was the first to arrive from the sons, after that it was Ubbe, they all gathered in the kitchen, they stood with their father and had a little chat “how was the dinner last night?” Ragnar asked Bjorn sighed as he drank some coffee “it was great, mother made her famous ribs and rice, Gunnhild and I had fun, we also spent time with the children, I’m trying my best to make time for everyone, I really needed a change of scene” Bjorn obviously is good at hiding his stress “how’s your mother?” he asked him again.

“Seriously dad?” Ubbe huffed “what?” Ragnar asked innocently “you don’t get to ask about Lagartha anymore, you are married to my mother! And you ruined those women enough!” he snapped at the older man “Lagartha and I spent thirteen years together! We are not just exes, we are friends, am I not supposed to check on my friend and the mother of my two children?” Ragnar asked defensively “no you don’t” Ubbe replied folding his arms.

Sigurd walked in and headed immediately to where his siblings and father were “have you seen Hvitserk?” he asked, everyone, looked at him confused “he didn’t show up home last night” he explained, Bjorn looked at his wristwatch then back at the younger man “no, he didn’t come yet, it’s almost eight, that’s so not like him” Bjorn said, everyone is obviously concerned now “he’s not himself anymore! I already told you that but you wouldn’t listen!” Sigurd huffed and stormed off the kitchen, just in time when Ivar entered.

“What is his problem today?” Ivar said, obvious sarcasm in his tone “Hvitserk didn’t return home last night and he’s late” Ubbe explained “well, anyone tried calling him?” he asked, everyone looked at him confused, he rolled his eyes “idiots” he pulled his phone out of his pocket and called Hvitserk, he could hear a ringing coming from the kitchen.

Bjorn followed the source of the ringing to the sink, he found Hvitserk’s phone there, and picked it “he’s forgotten it at work, thirteen missed phone calls, mostly from Sigurd” he sighed and put it in his pocket “what are we going to do?” Ubbe asked “obviously, get the day started, it’s almost time,” Ivar said then everyone went to their positions.

**08:00 a.m.**

The kitchen was a mess, no sign for Hvitserk anywhere, people were getting injured already and the sound of crushing could be heard, everyone was running but not in an organized way like yesterday, obviously, Hvitserk didn’t only yell at people to do things smoothly, he also made sure this was a safe functional environment.

A chief stormed out of the kitchen, to Ragnar’s office, he knocked on the door then entered without waiting for permission “Sir” the young chief asked, “yes Hilda?” Ragnar asked, taking his eyes off the screen to look at the woman in front of him “Hvitserk isn’t here yet and everything is a mess in the kitchen, I know you have plenty of things to do but we need someone to run things or else a major accident will happen” she explained, Ragnar sighed “just go now, I’m sure he’ll show up soon, if not, I’ll supervise everything myself.” 

**08:30 a.m.**

Hvitserk walked in from the front door, the camera focused on him, he was wearing the same clothes from yesterday, dark circles under his eyes, visibly drunk, he walked back to the kitchen “Woah people! What the hell?” he shouted, everyone suddenly dropped what they were doing and looked at him “what? We are already late! Chup Chup! Those thirty pancakes won’t make themselves!” he clapped his hands “we… we don’t sell pancakes” one of the chiefs stated “whatever we sell, just get to work” he huffed.

Sigurd stormed into the kitchen and grabbed Hvitserk’s arm “where were you last night? I was so worried! You are thirty minutes late! I thought something happened to you! Wait, are you seriously drunk at 8 in the damn morning?! Fuck Hvitserk!” he said all at once, he was indeed worried “would you chill for a sec and get off my back? Maybe get a life of your own while you’re at it?” Hvitserk scoffed, pulling a flask out of his jacket and drinking some “you need to get your shit together” Sigurd said angrily “and you need to get laid or some shit” Hvitserk said.

Ragnar walked in a few seconds ago and heard the whole conversation, he waited for his sons to stop arguing then he walked to Hvitserk “we need to talk” Ragnar said calmly “not now, I’m busy, running a damn kitchen” Hvitserk scoffed “Now” Ragnar roared, Hvitserk’s attitude disappeared and he walked to Ragnar’s office, knowing how deep in troubles he is.

Ragnar walked behind him, closed the door when everyone was in, he walked to a closet behind his desk and opened it “what? You’re not gonna yell at me for being late like everyone else?” Hvitserk said, trying to keep up with whatever tough guy act he had, Ragnar pulled out an air bed and put it on the floor, Hvitserk looked at him surprised and confused.

“It’s my fault, I’m putting pressure on you while you clearly need to rest, so lay down, get some sleep and we’ll solve everything out when you wake up, alright?” Ragnar’s calm, a comprehensive attitude clearly was a shock to Marvin and most importantly, Hvitserk, he laid down on the bed, Ragnar took out a blanket and tucked his son in “the kitchen?” he asked “I’ll take care of it” Ragnar replied. 

Once Hvitserk closed his eyes, Ragnar carefully sneaked out of his office and closed the door on his son, the camera zoomed on the messed up man who was sleeping like an angel, while Ragnar headed to the kitchen. 

**10:30 a.m.**

The camera closeup on the screen in the hall **Announcement, keep your phones near, we might need to call the fire department soon cause Ragnar’s kitchen** skills suck Ivar laughed, the camera focused on him _“you finding this funny?”_ Marvin asked concerned, Ivar lifted his eyes from his phone and looked at the camera “oh that? No, it’s lame, I’m laughing at a text” he replied _“what text?”_ Marvin asked, filming Ivar Closely.

“The none of your business kind of texts” he replied warningly, Marvin zoomed in on his phone when he wasn’t paying attention, it was a text from a guy named Oleg, telling him about the time he put laxatives in his brother’s drink and then danced it off like it was nothing.

_“What do you think is going on in the kitchen?”_ Marvin asked him, he shrugged “I dunno, maybe someone’s on fire, maybe Ragnar broke down in tears” Ivar replied, _“how’s your relationship with Ragnar?”_ Marvin asked again “well, Ragnar wasn’t a fan of me, he couldn’t handle all the crying of pain when I was a baby, so he left, spent many years sleeping in his office, he’d send cheques to my mother every now and then, she praised him a lot, but he was never there, when he returned a few years ago he suggested that we all should help in the cafe since it’s ours after his death, the cafe was about to get shut down for good but I saved it, then he started liking me,” Ivar said, ever so coldly _“so… you grew up without a father figure”_ Marvin said sadly, Ivar shrugged “I had Floki, he’s my friend, and he taught me everything he knew, when Ragnar returned he saw how close we were so he drove him away” 

_“I’m so sorry Ivar… that must’ve been really hard for you…”_ Marvin said sympathetically “save it, Stacey, want something to feel sorry about? Your ex Jordan, what were you thinking when you dating that joke?” he scoffed, the camera was out of focus for a bit _“how did you know?”_ she asked, Ivar didn’t answer, he simply smirked to the camera, sucking in the soul of the cameraman.

**12:47 p.m.**

The hall was filled with people, the tables, the takeaways, it was very messy, everyone was quite angry at the delay in their orders or the quality, Bjorn sighed, hoping by the end of the day the cafe won’t be put against a lawsuit.

The camera captured the faces of panicking employees, “you know what? I’m done! Ragnar sucks at kitchen managing! That idiot brother of ours needs to wake the hell up!” Bjorn whispered angrily to Ubbe “give him a break Bjorn, you know what it’s like to lose someone, Hvitserk never had time to grieve or deal with his feelings, he deserves a break” Ubbe said sympathetically.

“That’s why I’m saying it when I lost someone, I manned up and got to work because people were counting on me to lead them out of losing their jobs!” he folded his arms “and after that, you took off for two years, Hvitserk can’t leave” Ubbe explained, defensively of his younger brother “you had Lagartha, Aslug rarely cared about anyone but Ivar, and even him, she sent him to Floki to look after him so she can drink wine and droll over younger men” 

“Ubbe” Bjorn pinched his arm and motioned at the camera, Ubbe sighed in frustration “fuck” he mumbled “great, after trash-talking my mom, I cursed on TV! What a great fucking role model” he mumbled then stormed off to the kitchen “where are you going?” Bjorn shouted “to throw a bowl of boiling water on my head and end my suffering!” he shouted back.

Bjorn looked over at the camera and sighed “I suppose there’s no way I can convince you to leave that part out of the show no?” he asked, _“Nope”_ Marvin replied “fine, Ivar it is, what’s your name?” he asked with a little innocent smile _“Marvin, you called me that, remember?”_ the cameraman replied “no, like your real name?” he asked _“so you guys can embarrass me as you did with Stacy? I don’t think so Ironside”_ Marvin laughed then paused _“why are you called Ironside anyways?”_

Bjorn took over Ubbe’s job and helped people to find their seats “well, many years ago when I was seventeen, I was working a shift, everyone left, it was just me closing up, a burglar walked in and pointed a gun at my head, he wanted the money, I was having a rough day, so I went to the cash machine and picked up the ax on the side of the table then threw it at him, it cut off his hand, the one with the gun, then I called the cops, people thought it was heroic, and ever since then, the numbers of burglary went down in this side of the neighborhood” he said proudly, then greeted two old women out of the place.

**02:00 p.m.**

Ragnar was standing in the corner freaking out when Ubbe walked in, the kitchen is a mess, he stood in the middle of the way and clapped his hands, gaining everyone’s attention “listen up people, things are terrible, I can tell, hell! Last time Ragnar ran a kitchen Ivar was still in diapers! I know you all want Hvitserk to walk in and magically solve all of your problems but that’s not going to happen, not now at least, Hvitserk never took a day off just so he could be with you guys and make sure you are all safe, he cared about each one of you enough to learn the littlest details about how you guys prefer your working environment to be like, you all counted on him, we did as well, but guess what? Hvitserk is tired, it’s time for us to pay him back, it’s time for us to say, Hvitserk, you need rest and we’ll be okay cause you taught us how to work altogether! It’s time to prove to him that he didn’t waste the best years of his life working with incompetent people who can’t collaborate together and go one day without him yelling at them to do their jobs! It’s time for us to make him proud, so take a moment, take a deep breath and start getting your shit together!” 

The camera zoomed on the workers and how they listened, they applauded in agreement then went back to work, this time, it was smooth, Ragnar clapped his hands and walked to Ubbe “that’s… that was great, son!” he praised him, Ubbe looked at him dead in the eyes “Ragnar, I want you out of this kitchen right now” Ragnar nodded and walked out.

_“Why did you kick Ragnar out?”_ Marvin asked Ubbe as the camera followed him, roaring orders for everyone “because he was simply standing in the way. And he turned this kitchen to a war zone” he smiled ever so sweetly _“do you know how to run this kitchen anyways?”_ , “no one really does, it’s Hvitserk’s gig, he’s the experts, I’m just stating the obvious things, like please wipe the wet floor or someone will get hurt” he shouted the last part.

**04:30 p.m.**

There were less angry people at the hall, Bjorn took over Ubbe’s job and he was doing just fine, Ivar was busy with his calculations, Ubbe was running the kitchen the best he could, who would’ve thought, one guy missing would cause such problems.

But in the back, there’s a little room next to the manager’s room, there, all kinds of magic happen.

“It’s rude to stare” Sigurd mumbled as the Camera zoomed in on him _“well, you wouldn’t let us see what’s going on on the screens!”_ Marvin whined “it’s literally on Twitter! Just open your account and read it yourself” Sigurd stated, still focused on what he called yesterday, the social media’s laptop _“I would but my hands are a little tied right now”_ the camera shook a little, Sigurd nodded in understanding.

“Fine, you owe me a favor though” Sigurd warned then scrolled up the laptop “this woman, named Karen, she came to the cafe an hour ago, she mentioned us and said we were the worst service ever, and the food is trashy, that she expected better, so I kindly apologized and explained that we were having troubles in the kitchen, you know? The whole Hvitserk situation, I even told her next time she visits she’ll get a 30% discount, we’re cool right?” he started explaining passionately.

_“Mhm”_ Marvin simply replied “she mentioned us again, saying because our unprofessional manager, is taking a day off to jerk off and suck his own dick, she wasted two hours of her life in a four stars cafe, on food that makes horse shit sounds so delicious!” he said doing his best queen bee girl act. 

“so I tweeted this back: first of all, our kitchen manager isn’t unprofessional! He’s a food expert! He knows food better than you know how to pluck your eyebrows KAREN, he knows how to run a kitchen better than you know how to pull a hair and put it in the food and ask for a refund KAREN, yes we have it on tape. Second of all, he’s not jerking off or trying to suck his own dick which is scientifically impossible but I don’t assume you know science Karen, he’s sleeping like the baby angel he is. Third of all, there’s no such thing as a four stars cafe! This ain’t a hotel but I don’t expect you to know the difference since the first thing you did after sitting down was take off your shoes and suffocate the costumers with your feet smell, and last but not least, wtf Karen? That’s some creepy shit! Why would you even eat horse shit? Is it some sort of a kink or some crap? GO AWAY” 

He chuckled, seeming so proud of his creation “see, I even tweeted a picture of Hvitserk sleeping, people are going crazy about it, they think it’s adorable” he showed the camera the picture, it was Hvitserk sleeping peacefully, cuddling the blanket’s edges _“won’t that get you involved in a lawsuit?”_ Marvin asked “well, no, the bio is our savior, Kattegat desserts and sweets cafe, be rude at your own risk, we have cameras and we aren’t afraid to use them, it’s basically a warning” Sigurd shrugged then looked at the communication laptop, Ubbe’s name showed up.

“Looks like something interesting will happen, they’re throwing Hvirserk a party after work” he started typing **Announcement, all workers are welcomed to stay after work for Hvitserk’s get well party**  
**07:00 p.m.**

The hall was almost empty, the workers were already cleaning up, the kitchen as well, Bjorn was alone in the hall, Ivar was in a corner far away _“why’s everyone cleaning up?”_ Marvin asked him, “so we can have more time to spend with Hvitserk, instead of worrying about cleaning we can all have fun” he explained, _“won’t there be even more work after the party?”_ Marvin asked again “oh god no, the kitchen just did cupcakes, Hvitserk’s favorite, and they will put it all in a paper plate so we have nothing to clean up, and paper cups, environment matters in this place even though we don’t show it much” 

_“So… you guys don’t use anything plastic around here?”_ , “well, we did but then Ivar divorced her” Bjorn winked at the camera and laughed at his own joke “no, we don’t even use straws, when someone asks for them we shame them and if that doesn’t work we offer them metal straws for two dollars, they can take it with them back home and such, we use glass, paper and recyclable shit” 

Ivar was bored in the corner, that’s why he was checking his phone out, smiling at the screen _“won’t you tell me anything interesting? My boss needs drama!”_ Marvin whined at him “I’ve already told you to look for it somewhere else” Ivar mumbled _“well, too bad, I’m assigned for you”_ she huffed, Ivar rolled his eyes _“tell me about your ex-wife then?”_ Ivar put his phone down “how did you know about this?” he asked, the look on his face was somehow scary.

_“I have my resources”_ Marvin replied “Bjorn, now thanks to your resources, everyone will know my business” Ivar glared at the camera _“I’m sorry…”_ the girl said, he rolled his eyes “save it, her name was Freydis, she was very beautiful, so when she paid attention to a crippled guy like me, I was head over heels for her, stupid, she made me believe I was the king of the world, a few months later, she said she was pregnant, I was the happiest, cause doctors said it was almost impossible for me to have kids, later I found out she was cheating on me with a pizza delivery guy, all this time, I went to confront them, Hvitserk followed me, the man attacked me, Freydis helped, Hvitserk saved me, I pressed charges, they are both in jail, happy ending” 

Marvin, aka Stacy, was speechless “what? Got nothing to say?” he chuckled, immediately making a sad breakup story seems like an awkward one “you suck at your job” he sighed and returned to his phone.

**08:00 p.m.**

Bjorn changed the sign to close and the workers brought the cupcakes to the front, they brought a recyclable bag as well for an immediate trash waste, Ragnar went to the back, he walked slowly to his office and shook Hvitserk gently “Hvitty, wake up, it’s time to go home” he whispered, Hvitserk mumbled for him to go away, but Rangar insisted until the younger woke up.

Hvitserk looked around confused, unable to collect what happened in the past few hours “you were tired, so we gave you the special treatment but don’t get used to it” he explained and offered him a hand, Hvitserk took his hand and stood up, stumbling a little bit.

“Come on, you owe your people an apology” Ragnar patted his shoulder, the two walked to the front and the cameras followed, they focused on Hvitserk’s confused looks as everyone screamed SURPRISE, he looked at Ubbe, waiting for an explanation “it’s our way to say we are thankful for everything you’ve done for this place and we need you to get your shit together cause we fucking need you” he explained.

Hvitserk nodded and thanked everyone then everyone picked a cupcake and started eating, drinking, the terrible events of the day were simply replaced with a happy ending, it lasted for an hour before everyone went back to their home.


	3. Day Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A lot of secrets are revealed, stories are told, and a special guest will arrive, this chapter is filled with family drama and feelings.

**07:30 a.m.**

When the cameramen arrived, Ragnar was already there in the kitchen, he was preparing coffee for himself and whoever comes after him, he explained it was a habit of his _“how’s your night?”_ Marvin asked him “oh well, I went back to my apartment, and I stayed up all night watching a show about Norse mythology, such an interesting subject you know?” he replied, _“don’t you live with Aslaug and Ivar?”_ Marvin asked curiously “no, Aslaug thinks I’m unfit to live in my own house” 

_“Why did you leave though? What happened?”_ , “it’s complicated, I didn’t just leave, I had to leave” Ragnar answered _“Well, it’s your chance to tell your story”_ Marvin stated, Ragnar looked at him for a minute then nodded “in my office,” he said as he greeted the workers who just arrived, he then made his way to his office, the camera following, he closed the door behind them and took a seat on the top of his desk surface.

“I’m a father of six children, I had two women who expected things from me, support, money, responsibilities… call it whatever you want, things started to fall apart when Ivar was born, looking after a disabled child was difficult, it scared me, and I’ve been alive for too long and I’ve seen things, I was too afraid to hold my own child, the constant crying, his screams of pain, he barely slept from all the pain, and I just couldn’t help my own child, and Aslaug needed a lot of money to treat him, money that I didn’t have on me” he paused.

“I started taking the second job, I was barely two hours home, Aslaug realized my constant absent, she needed me but I wasn’t there, and I needed my wife but she had four children to look after, we started seeking what we needed in other people, I craved to be looked at as a real person, not just a father but as a man, you understand? And Aslaug needed someone to be present and give her a shoulder to cry on, we fought whenever we met, my two hours became less and less, I would go to our house to visit the children when she was out with Ivar, to see a doctor or attend a therapy session, then I met this woman, she took my pain away, with heroin and all kinds of drugs” 

“The feeling of leaving your body was my goal, and I had it, but by the time I realized I became an addict, it was too late, I tried to keep it in control but I failed, I left before I cause any damage, Aslaug took over the cafe, Lagartha helped but she has her own thing going, Bjorn though, he handled too much at a very young age, by the age of eighteen he was married and helping both Aslaug and Lagartha, he lost his child at nineteen, his wife followed a few months after, he looked after his brothers the best he could, Lagartha did great job raising a real man!” 

“Bjorn was thirteen when Lagartha and I divorced, the age gap between him and my other children was huge, but they loved him, he is a good brother, it’s me who’s a terrible husband, anyways, I went away, then I sought help, now I’m fully recovered and that’s why I returned, I was in rehab, in and out for years, I’m four years clean now, that’s for how long I’ve been here, but, I’m also sick, it was stupid to try drugs and now I’m paying for my many many mistakes” 

Ragnar explained as Marvin filmed him quietly, without any interruptions _“what’s wrong with you?”_ Marvin asked “a potential heart failure, doctors say if I’m not careful with my life, I might end up losing it, they say with good diet I might die sooner than I want, so here I’m, trying to make things right with my sons before I go” he answered, looking down _“do they know?”_ Ragnar shook his head no “I haven’t told anyone, I guess everyone will know now no?” he let out a small sad laugh “it’s okay, I lived past my time, it’s time for me to meet the gods and be reunited with my dearest friends” he smiled trying to shake off the sadness that filled the air.

  
  
  


**09:00 a.m.**

The kitchen was back in order, with Hvitserk seeming way better than the past two days, he was smiling, and jumping enthusiastically around the place “don’t you dare drop the bowl or god help me I’ll wipe it dry with your skin” you threatened one of the workers holding a bowl of boiling water, he noticed Marvin’s interest in the whole situation “if it drops it will hurt people, melting shoes, people slipping” he explained.

“It’s a bad idea to film the kitchen, now it can be used against me in a lawsuit, I seem so bossy and abusive, but thanks to me, the accidents rate went down, well, it was down until Ragnar decided to run it yesterday, I lost a chief, Ubbe hangs out here sometimes so he has an idea on what to do, the day just started so we need to prepare a good amount of things to ease our work such as cream, and drinks, we serve drinks too, orange juice, milk and things like that” he explained randomly.

_“How are you feeling today?”_ Marvin asked the moment he stopped talking, knowing Hvitserk he’d stop talking five seconds, or yell at someone, Hvitserk clapped his hands when the worker placed the bowl in the correct place, then told him to help in dishwashing, he then returned his attention to the camera “well, I was just tired, sometimes it’s like that, but I’m good, I feel better, I’m not trying to drink myself to death, at least not for now, so I’m good” 

_“What happened yesterday?”_ Marvin asked again “honestly? I don’t remember much from the past two days, I was here, then I was partying, then I was back here, but I remember the cupcakes were great, I think I ate about five, I fucking love eating!” he said, “got anything to spare for me people?” a chief walked in and gave him a cookie, he thanked her “where do you even put the food? You’re so skinny!” another whined “I swear, Hvitserk could eat this entire kitchen and I’ll be the one getting fatter!” another commented, they all shared a laugh.

“Stress burns calories and you dumb ducks give me plenty of things to be stressed about! Gunda, pah-lease! For the thousand times! The salt is the one in the blue Jar! If I see you making any more of those sweet craps I’ll lose my shit!” he shouted “see? Very stressful” 

  
  


**10:43 a.m.**

  
  


Sigurd was checking the social media app, sending delivery locations and requests, very quiet, as usual, _“anything interesting?”_ Marvin asked Sigurd shrugged “not really, interesting things happen after 12 p.m.” he simply replied, _“did you do anything fun yesterday after returning home?”_ Marvin asked him again “I made sure Hvitserk is home, in bed, asleep and safe then went out with my band, friends, I mean friends” he sighed.

_“You play in a band?”_ Sigurd huffed and nodded “I play bass in a band called Runes of Odin, in old mythology, Odin is the god of all gods, he’s responsible of everything that happened, happening, will happen on our planet, and he really fucked shit up, so we dedicated our band to remind the world that Odin fucked up and now we pay for it, it’s a metaphor that we need to take action and make this world a better place” 

_“That’s really nice! Did your family know?”_ Sigurd shook his head no “music isn’t part of the family business, I have to do certain things, I can’t leave, I’m doomed to spend the rest of my life with Ivar trying to prove himself better than everyone, Bjorn trying to be better than Ragnar, Ubbe being too nice for this place and Hvitserk falling apart” he sighed.

_“Can I ask you a question?”_ Marvin asked Sigurd shrugged “it doesn’t matter if I say no now, does it?” , _“what exactly happened between Hvitserk and his wife?”_ Marvin asked, “haven’t you heard Bjorn’s typical firefighter story?” Marvin nodded “so… it happened last year so you must understand he didn’t have any time to mourn, or even a chance to comprehend what’s going on, they were so in love, all they talked about is getting married and having children, Hvitserk is a nice guy, he really is, he is easy to fall in love with and he’d easily fall in love too, so we are kind of protective when it comes to him, each breakup takes a piece of him, and sadly girls take advantage of his kindness” 

“But Thora, his wife’s name, which you should never say it in front of him otherwise he’d break down, she was his match, nice, pure, all that, on their anniversary, she had to work, and an orphanage was on fire, she and other brave people headed there, they couldn’t put the fire down so they evacuated everyone, well, everyone but one kid stuck in the third floor, everyone was too afraid to go, but Thora without any thinking went there and helped the kid down”

“a piece of the ceiling fell on her, by the time they were able to save her, the fire took half of her body, two months she was in and out of comas, the amount of pain, she was a beauty, but the fire took it away from her, later, her organs started shutting down, her heart stopped and she passed away, two months Hvitserk didn’t leave her side unless to go home and shower or to grab food, he watched her fall piece by piece when she passed away, Ragnar barely gave him two days to deal with his grieve, he needed him in his work, and when he returned, it was a nightmare, the constant drinking was the least of our problems”

“He’d forget to eat or drink water, he’d faint in the middle of work, he’d breakdown, he’s better now, don’t get me wrong but he’s still not okay, I wish I could help him, he needs time away, and he needs to see a specialist about it, but our life is very busy, don’t get me wrong, my brother is one of the strongest and smartest people ever, but he just needs help I guess” Sigurd sighed.

_“I’m so sorry to hear that”_ Marvin finally said “it’s okay, we’ll figure something out” he gave a weak smile then returned to do his work “oh look, Hvitserk’s photo went viral, many girls are asking for his account and whether he’s available or not, maybe I should set him up with someone” he chuckled as he looked at the screen.

  
  


**11:30 a.m.**

  
  


Bjorn was observing the hall quietly, the camera focused on one singular woman sitting on a table, eyeing Bjorn, smiling at him whenever she caught him looking, she was blonde and beautiful _“she likes you”_ Marvin stated “hm?” Bjorn asked confused then looked in the direction the camera was changed to _“she’s cute don’t you think?”_ Marvin asked “what’s even cuter is Gunnhild cutting off my dick if she thinks I’m into that” Bjorn laughed a little.

_“So… you are afraid of her?”_ Marvin asked again “you will be stupid if you weren’t, but no, that’s not all, I just simply love my wife and I see her as the prettiest woman alive” he simply said, Marvin filmed the woman walking toward Bjorn, she smiled at him and bit her bottom lip “you’re the manager?” she asked, Bjorn looked at her, trying to stay as polite as possible “No, I’m the hall manager” he corrected.

“Well, whatever you are handsome, I wanted to let you know that the food was amazing, but the service could’ve been better” she giggled flirtatiously, Bjorn was simply being his calm self “how so?” he asked “well… for a starter, the waiter isn’t as hot as you are…” she traced a line on his chest, he laughed and took her hand off of him “I’ll tell my supervisor to hire the Magic Mike Live boys next time so they can serve you your thirteen dollars meal” he said sarcastically “I like humor in a man” she winked at him then walked out.

“Did you see that?” Bjorn laughed, looking at the camera _“forget I said anything about her being cute, that was desperate!”_ Marvin replied “well, it’s good to know that I still have it at thirty-eight” Bjorn laughed again _“wait… you are thirty-eight?”_ Marvin asked in disbelief “yes, do I not look like it?” , _“not at all, but wait, Ubbe is only twenty-six! And…_ _wait, Ivar is twenty that means there’s a sixteen years difference! What on earth?!”_ Marvin screamed the last part in disbelief “yes, Aslaug is younger than my mother, so she was pretty productive and Ragnar is… well… Horny” 

_“You’re old enough to be Ivar’s father!”_ Marvin said to Bjorn rolled his eyes, “for fuck’s sake just stop already! I’m thirty-eight and I have two children, get over it, man!” , _“sorry,_ _but wow,”_ Marvin said, Bjorn simply laughed at his reaction.

**12:38 p.m.**

The screen glowed in the hall, it was an announcement from Sigurd, **Gordon Ramsey said he’s on his way here, I repeat, GORDON RAMSEY IS COMING** , the waiters started working in panic, Bjorn put reserved on one of the tables just in case it was true, Bjorn swore if they won’t get a good review from Gordon Ramsey he’ll burn this place down.

  
  


01:55 P.M. 

The camera zoomed in on Gordon Ramsey as he walked from the door, he was immediately greeted by Ubbe, the man was a pro at what he did, yet sounded so nervous around the chief, he seated him on the empty table that Bjorn had already marked it as reserved for the man, the restaurant’s eyes were on him, it was like everyone froze for a minute “Mr. Ramsey, this is Diederik, he’ll be your waiter for today” the younger boy marched in his direction as Ubbe motioned to him.

“Please, I’m here to enjoy a meal, don’t be stressed about,” Gordon said, Ubbe nodded and left to do his job, which is greeting people and now, telling people to go away since they are blocking the view to take pictures of the famous chief.

Diederik took the man’s order, Krumkate, and coffee, he sent the order to the kitchen it took them ten minutes to send the order, which was very quick for a full hall, Hvitserk must’ve been in a very good mood, everything was going so well, even Gordon was impressed by how natural the whole situation felt, how they didn’t ignore people just because he was here, and how the food’s quality was equal, he even ordered again, this time he wanted to try their famous cupcakes.

  
  


02:25 p.m.

Bjorn approached the chief and introduced himself as the hall manager, the man took interest in him and asked him to join him on the table, the camera alongside “what experience do you have that made you worthy of this position?” Gordon asked “well, Ragnar Lothbrok is my father he apologizes that he can’t be present to welcome you himself, he has a meeting with our other branches, he wanted me to learn everything about this place since he’s planning to retire someday, I’ve worked in different positions before though, I did it all” Bjorn said with confidence.

“You’re a family cafe, right? You and Ragnar are running it?” Gordon asked, “and my brothers, you already met Ubbe, Ivar’s on the cashier, Sigurd behind the screen, and Hvitserk in the kitchen” he explained **hello Mr. Ramsey, we are very glad to have you here** the screen lit up “that’s Sigurd” Bjorn sighed “well, you weren’t kidding when you said he’s behind the screen” the man laughed.

Moments later, Hvitserk walked out of the kitchen and went to Ivar who was doing some maths, the two were being filmed by two cameras at least, “what are you doing here?” Ivar asked confused, which makes sense, Hvitserk never leaves the kitchen “I just got a call that I thought you should know of” Hvitserk said hesitantly “well, start talking anytime now” Ivar said, raising an eyebrow at him.

“It’s from Prison, they wanted to reach you but they couldn’t since you changed your phone number, apparently they had my number instead” Hvitserk rumbled, Ivar rolled his eyes “just tell me Hvitserk” he barked, Hvitserk bit his lips nervously “it’s Freydis, she was involved in a jail fight with another inmate and she was stabbed in the throat, she didn’t survive” he finally said after thinking it through for few seconds.

Ivar looked at him blankly “okay” he mumbled then started returning numbers on his laptop, Hvitserk looked at him confused “okay? That’s all you have to say? Ivar the woman is your wife!” Hvitserk said, almost angrily “was my wife, she tried to kill me if I was correct, you were there,” Ivar said coldly “still! You loved her! Shouldn’t you at least be sad? Show any sort of feelings instead of this!” he said meaning him going back to work.

“Fine, I’ll just drop this matter and go weep in the kitchen and steal the vodka from the fridges, will that be appropriate for you brother?” Ivar said, obviously getting irritated by how emotional Hvitserk was, to him Freydis reminded him of his late wife, to Ivar, Freydis was a cheating bitch who got what she deserves.

“Fuck you! You know. Being a cripple doesn’t mean you have to be an asshole” Hvitserk told him “she’s not Thora! Stop comparing your loving wife to my loving dead ex!” he scoffed “don’t bring her to this” Hvitserk warned “what? You don’t want me to bring your precious dead wife? Say her name Hvitserk, or is it too damn scary? Say it” he ordered, Hvitserk was obviously losing it “stop it!” he yelled “no! You grow a pair!” Ivar yelled back.

“You know what? I don’t need this” Hvitserk said “yeah walk away, run from your problems like you always do” Ivar scoffed “at least I can run” Hvitserk replied, he didn’t really want to hurt him with his words, he simply wanted to make him angry, which he succeeded at doing, Ivar picked the laptop up and threw it at his brother, aiming for his head, which is exactly where it landed, Hvitserk placed his hand on his head, where he was injured.

He then charged at Ivar, trying to hit him but Ubbe was quick to act, he rushed and stood between the two of them, Ivar looked somehow calm, it was scary as if he already had a plan to put an end to all of this, it took few minutes for Sigurd to join his two brothers, he took it upon himself to hold Hvitserk away from Ivar before those two kill each other, Ubbe was up Ivar’s throat, trying to stop him from reaching Hvitserk.

It didn’t stop until Ragnar walked out of his office to check on everything and say hello to Gordon Ramsey who was watching the whole fight with amusement, “for god’s sake enough!” Ragnar roared at his boys “he fucking started it” Ivar protested “you threw a laptop on me!” Hvitserk said defensively “is it the laptop with all of our data in it?” Ragnar asked Ivar nodded “yep” he simply replied “damnit Ivar! It’s the sixth this year!” Ragnar sighed.

“You know what? I don’t even want to know what happened but this ends now! You chose the worst timing to do this! Gordon Ramsey is here! His review was supposed to help us open new branches in England and UAE! But no! You just had to act like children! You purposely injured your older brother and you! You provoked him!” Ragnar spoke, frustrated from the way his sons are acting.

“How on earth did he provoke shit? He was walking away and Ivar threw the laptop on him! He’s bleeding! He could’ve been seriously damaged” Sigurd argued “don’t worry, he won’t lose any brain cells, you can’t lose what you don’t have” Ivar scoffed “you know, gods knew you are such a jerk, that’s why they took away your legs, every time I have any sort of compassion towards you, you prove to me that you’re nothing but a piece of shit” Sigurd replied “save your compassions to the guys you’re fucking,” Ivar said coldly then picked up his crutches and limped outside, Ubbe following him.

Sigurd took Hvitserk back to the social media room, where he can get some privacy to get himself back together, Ragnar was left to pick up the pieces, not that he was any good at that, but he can manage to do his sons’ works until they calm down.

All of the drama made the cameras forget about the existence of one particular celebrity in the cafe, Gordon Ramsey, who was speechless “it’s a family feud, they are usually nicer” Bjorn explained nervously, his cocky, confident attitude disappeared and now, he’s just confused, worried, and uncertain “clearly… are they… is it okay if I just get the cheque? I don’t think I wanna stick around for round two” the chief replied “about that, Ivar kind of… It’s on the house, but hey, at least the food was good right?” Bjorn said, mentally slapping himself, “don’t forget the free entertainment” Gordon joked nervously “Yeah, sorry about that” Bjorn sighed ashamed.

“Well, it was a pleasure to meet you, Bjorn, the food was amazing! And hopefully, we’ll get a chance to repeat this, but with better circumstances” he said after getting up and offering a hand to shake, Bjorn did the same, took his hand and shook it “I apologize once again, hopefully, you will consider returning” he said, and led the man outside.

  
  


**04:12 p.m.**

Ubbe and Ivar were standing the alley next to the cafe, the camera zoomed in on them, Ivar seemed angry, while Ubbe was mostly worried “Ivar, it’s been more than an hour, let’s go inside before you get hurt” Ubbe begged “go inside? You saw what your brothers did! You heard what they said! I should’ve left when I had a chance! I’m not taking any more of their bullshit! I’m going home!” Ivar said, pacing angrily.

“And let them win? No, you’ll return because you are the only one who knows how to fix the laptop and the only one who can do the finance, you will calm down and go there, with that smirk of yours and prove them wrong, all of them” Ubbe said desperately “I’m tired of proving people wrong” Ivar mumbled “it’s what you do best Ivar, by standing, you proved all doctors wrong, that’s what you do brother” he patted his shoulder then went inside.

Marvin took a few steps closer to Ivar _“are you okay?”_ she asked, Ivar nodded “yes, just another day of dealing with Sigurd and overdramatic Hvitserk” Ivar explained _“he’s an_ _asshole, you know? I’d understand why Hvitserk is upset but Sigurd is something else”_ she sighed “yeah, he’s always been jealous of me because I had mother’s attention, he’s a man now, yet he can’t seem to grow up” 

_“You mean Aslaug didn’t pay the others much attention?”_ Marvin asked “look, my mother, she’s not perfect but she did, is doing the best she can, she was left alone with four children and a business to run which she had no idea how to do it, she was left with a crippled child who needed her constant attention, and three others to feed” he explained “maybe she didn’t pay them much of attention, maybe she skipped few plays for doctor appointments, but if I could choose between being neglected with healthy legs and her attention, I would happily choose the first one”

He paused for a minute “my brothers, they are jealous of me, for getting mother’s attention as if I wanted it, I wish I didn’t need it, I wish if they just think about what it’s like to be me, the pain I endure every day just to do the normal things, you know, I was somehow glad to know Freydis wasn’t pregnant with my child, who would want a father who can’t run with his kids, who can never hold them while standing, who can’t teach them how to ride a bike or swim, who might give them the same curse he has, no child would want a father that can’t go to their school play because the pain is too much even painkillers can’t make it stop” 

_“Ivar I-”_ Marvin was about to speak but Ivar interrupted her “don’t, I’m not saying this because I want pity, now I somehow regret speaking, the whole world will know what it’s like to be me, but maybe it would help my dear brothers to get off of my back a little, see? Now that’s why I want to leave, I have emotions too, just because I don’t ruin my life and the lives of everyone else doesn’t mean I don’t have them, they are there, Freydis was my love, she betrayed me, the moment I saw her with that man she became dead to me.” 

_“Do you… do you want to go inside? Face your demons and all…”_ Marvin suggested, Ivar nodded “I like the whole metaphor” he chuckled a little and took a deep breath before entering, all eyes were on him, he limped back to the desk where he sat, Bjorn was eyeing him carefully, to make sure he wasn’t going to throw anything at anyone, while Ubbe seemed a little more proud of his brother for not running away, for returning with his head held high.

Ivar soon started fixing the mess he made, he retreated the data from the trashed laptop and fixed the receipts, he made a mental note to check on Hvitserk later in his own aggressive way.

**05:00 p.m.**

Things were quiet now at the media room, well, at least Hvitserk was, Sigurd was pacing around angrily, barely paying attention to the ringing phone or the beeping laptops, he didn’t care, how dare he? He hit Hvitserk! Implied that he was into men, insulted him, humiliated him in front of everyone! He definitely wanted Ivar dead at the moment.

“Sigurd just fucking stop! You are giving me a headache” Hvitserk whined, Sigurd looked at him “it’s not I who’s giving you a headache! It is the laptop that was fucking thrown at your head! You are still bleeding!” he growled “I’m okay, it’s not like I didn’t have worst injuries, besides, I pushed it too far, I kind of was a dick to him” Hvitserk sighed, pressing the ice bag closer to his injury.

“Are you seriously defending him now?” Sigurd said furiously “yes, he is right, Freydis isn’t Thora, and she did try to kill him, he has enough pain, he can live with one less” Hvitserk shrugged, wincing every now and then, “he threw a laptop at you! You could’ve died” Sigurd argued “but I didn’t, I mocked him Sigurd, I mocked my little cripple brother who’s struggling to walk! What kind of a big brother does that? He already has to live with his sickness and I just threw it at him the first chance I got!” he said, feeling guilty.

“You have a kind heart brother, me, I don’t, I’m furious at him, ever since we were kids, it always has to be about poor little Ivar! Well, poor little Ivar is a grown man now! And it’s you and Ubbe who made him think he can talk to us like this, it’s mother’s love that made him rotten, spoiled, brat! I refuse to defend him! I refuse to just let it go!” Sigurd replied.

“Do you hear yourself? He’s our brother you are already giving him a hard time without you holding grudges like five years old, he only hurt you because you come at him first, it’s self-defense, and honestly, you can be such a bully sometimes” Sigurd scoffed “name one time I bullied him” “remember that one time you put his medicine on the highest shelf and hid his crutches?” Hvitserk said, raising an eyebrow at him “that was a long time ago!” Sigurd replied, unimpressed “Sigurd, my dearest young brother, that was last week” 

A few minutes later, a knock was on the door, Sigurd opened it, it was one of the workers carrying a plate of chocolate chip cookies “I didn’t ask for this” Hvitserk told him confused, the worker nodded “It’s from Ivar” Hvitserk sighed and took the plate, thanking the waiter “see? Not all bad” he told Sigurd once they were alone “wait until you find they are poisoned” Sigurd mumbled.

  
  


06:10 P.M.

  
  


Ubbe barely left his phone, the camera zoomed, he was texting his wife, Torvi telling her how stressed he is about this day, how he can’t wait until he’s home, back in her warm embrace and hear her sweet voice, it was somehow romantic, Marvin couldn’t help but let a little “aww” escape her lips.

“This is supposed to be private” Ubbe stated, she laughed _“oh honey, y’all signed the contract, nothing is private from 7 a.m. until 9 p.m. Besides, I think it’s so sweet! I wish I can meet Torvi, I feel like she’s the best person ever from the way you talk about her!”_ she said all admiring the man’s love to his wife “she is, and the best part, she knows what I’m dealing with, so she knows how to make me feel better about the whole situation” 

_“Speaking of which, how are you feeling?”_ Marvin asked “well, Ivar is good, he’s working again, I talked to Hvitserk he’s okay, nothing serious but Sigurd is mad, and Bjorn is good, he’s filling in for Hvitserk until he can get back to work, so yeah, everything is great” he shrugged _“uhh… Ubbe?”_ Marvin asked “hm?” he replied _“that’s not what I asked, I asked you how are you feeling… as in you, not your brothers, not your work, you”_ she explained “I don’t get it” he frowned.

“ _What don’t you get about it? I’m simply asking how does all of this make you feel, like are you sad, angry, stuff like that?”_ she replied confused “I know, I’m just surprised, no one but Torvi really asked me that before” he sighed, he greeted a group of high schoolers who walked in and helped them find a table then returned to his spot “you know, we call them the **Br** ouhahas, it’s the second code you’ll learn” he said, trying to change the subject _“what does that even mean?”_ Marvin asked “Brouhaha is a word that means overexcited response, which is what we get when we talk to them, they are young, so trying a place like ours is a new experience to them, and they are eager for it” 

_“Yes but that didn’t really answer my question, Ubbe, are you running away from your feelings?”_ she said dramatically, Ubbe rolled his eyes “no Marvin, I simply don’t want to share how I feel in front of everyone, it’s not a thing that I’m used to” Ubbe explained, _“how’s that?”_

“well, when Ragnar was gone, Aslaug had to spend most of the time to look after Ivar, so I had to look after the younger ones, Hvitserk and Sigurd, Hvitserk is very compassionate, he’d stress out the minute he can sense me stressing out, and Sigurd would act up if he sees I’m getting soft, later Ivar was added to the list, and no matter how much I wanted to cry cause it’s unfair for a five years old to be in such pain I can’t, for obvious reasons”

“I remember once, Aslaug had to leave for an emergency here, Bjorn couldn’t babysit for whatever reason, I was fifteen, Hvitserk was around thirteen, Sigurd was eleven and Ivar was ten, anyways, I was sick, but I didn’t tell anyone, running after them eventually got me exhausted so I fainted, by the time I woke up, Hvitserk was clinging to me, begging me not to die, Sigurd was hysterically yelling at Ivar because he panicked and broke a bone, so ever since then I learned how to hide my feelings well”

_“What did you do when you woke up then?”_ Marvin asked, Ubbe shrugged “the usual, sent Sigurd on time out so I could deal with Ivar’s pain and comfort Hvitserk, who was crying louder than Ivar” he laughed a little “good old days!” he sighed “I feel stressed, I feel very stressed right now, I worry too much about my siblings, I’m afraid one day they will hurt each other, and Gordon Ramey, checking in on us didn’t make things any easier for me, I’ll be glad when this day’s over”

  
  
  


**07:45 p.m.**

People were either finishing their meals or paying the bills, ready to leave, only fifteen minutes before they close up, Hvitserk finally left the media room and joined Ivar and Ubbe in the hall, he apologized to Ivar about what happened earlier, he knew how stubborn his brother could be and those cookies were the closest he could get to an apology, Ivar did too, feeling bad after seeing his brother’s blond locks had turned red from his own blood.

Bjorn left the kitchen covered in flour, he looked so exhausted, cursing Hvitserk for not being able to fill in, he didn’t understand how his younger brother did it without going throw a breakdown every five minutes, yet again, Hvitserk is going through one whenever he gets a chance.

  
  


**08:00 p.m.**

  
  


Ubbe was saying his goodbyes to the costumers and by the time they all left, he changed the sign to close and everyone sighed in relief.

Sigurd walked out of his room then out of the cafe, without bothering to look at anyone, it didn’t really matter to him at this point, he just wanted out, the cameras tried to follow him but he dodged them all.

Ragnar followed him, the only difference is that he stayed and helped everyone with the clean up which lasted around thirty minutes, no one really discussed anything, they were all glad the day was over and they didn’t want to mention it ever again.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> let me know what do you think would happen on Day two and whether you think I should continue this or not, hope you had fun reading it.  
> also, Marvin is a reference to all cameramen from now on of all genders.


End file.
